ECU students headed for friendly competition with other UNC schools

GREENVILLE, NC
(Mar. 23, 2007)
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Students at the 16 campuses of the University of North Carolina system, including East Carolina University, will be in a heated competition next week, but they won’t be battling on an athletic field. They will be participating in the Service North Carolina Project set for March 24-31.

Service North Carolina is an annual event uniting all 16 UNC campuses to encourage volunteerism and provide students with creative and rewarding opportunities to make a difference. We are excited about the increased number of volunteers ECU can share with the community during this time. We also hope students who participate will continue to explore volunteer opportunities throughout their time at ECU, said Jason Denius, director of the ECU Volunteer and Service-Learning Center.

Sponsored by the ECU Student Government Association and the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center, ECU’s planned volunteer opportunities for students included working at the Pitt County Humane Society, visiting residents of Carolina House Assisted Living Center and assisting children with art projects at ECU’s Youth Arts Festival.

The kick-off for ECU’s participation will be 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 26 near the Wright Place. During those hours, the American Red Cross also will be holding a blood drive on campus. Denius said that each blood donation would equal five volunteer hours toward ECU’s total for the week.

“Service North Carolina supports a little friendly competition between campuses, so the school with the most volunteer hours at the end of the week will be recognized,” said Denius. “ECU finished a strong second last year to N.C. State, and we certainly have our eyes on first prize this year.”

More information on the Service North Carolina project and the planned ECU projects is available at www.ecu.edu/volunteer.